Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1887-07-13
MANS HARD FATE.
How he was Convicted Of burglary
aud Given u Long Aentence.
New YORK Man and EIprcss.

cut mouth, with white, gllstening
teeth, large gray eyes, and serene,
dignifed expression, combine to make
pbysiognomy that would DE sun
gled out 10y the spectator. IL
any crowd. On one check u a
large scar, which turns white or red ac-
cording TO the emotions OF the subject,
| and which did more than aught else I"
ruin the life of it's owner At the TIM"
Of the bank robberies in the smaller
cities of New York and the Weather
States popular Indignation and otii;la,
| fear ran very high. They culmlnl'ed
| when an audacious burglary was accom-
| plished in the western part OF New York
State. A bank supposedto be secnrcly
guarded and practically burglar proof
was entered. the Waterman " heldup,
the safes "blown ont. and everything
of value, even 10 prOmissory notes, car
RED away. The bank authorities o.
nearly all the ncighboring cities came
together. and offered series of heavy
rewards for the arrest and conviction 81
the perpetrators. The Pinkertons were
retained. and all the machinery OF law
set i'll motion.
The thieves were traced to New
| York. and especially one, whose appear
ance tailed exactly with that given. y
detective saw n man on Broadway who
answered this description and dogSed
him to lis house. A few inquiries dis
closed the man to be physician. DR..
u. d., who WAS married, had good
practice, and enjoyed a hrat-clesS repu-
tation. The. detective, unwilling to
make a false accusation, ttlpgnphcd on
for the Waterman and another wit
ness to come to New York and identify
tie suspected party. They arrived
the next day and identified the ply
sician as be left bis Office. The officer
arrestod and handcuffcd the nstonisbed
] oc,or, and, travelling al night on the
New York Central landed him the next
day in the county Jail OF the county
where the crime had been committed.
The prisoner, believing that he would
have no trouble in establishing his il
noconce. treated the matter lightly and
| tclcgraphCd for only two friends t.
prove that he was in the metropolis
when the robbery occurred. The eX-
animation came of, the Doctor and the
single witness who reached the court
room tcstifying TO this fact, while,
on the other hand, ten promi-
ncnt citizens identified him as one OF
the gang who had robbed the bank
The magistrate held the physician to
await the action of the grand jury, am
put him under 500, 600 bail. Wealthy
ifi,nGs came on from New York to be
omclis surety, hutasthcy ownednoraal
estate in the county they were refused.
4 year and a half elapsed before he wa
brought to trial IN the mean time hi
wife dlcd of broken heart, and Their
only Child survived her but a feN
months. His little capital was exhaust
cd. and he was compelled to sacri Ice
his library, instruments, and fur
niiure to defray the expenses Of
the trial. When this was ended
he was pennicss. The trial wIs
subbornly contested. Five witncsses
unknown, of course, to the jury, proved
an 0ijbj fifty of the best men OF tha
place identified him as one OF ,he
thieves. The jury, carried away with
the popular feeling, found him guilty.
and he was sentenced to the State
prison for twenty years. Here he wa,
taken, and here he passed the xt Eve
years. During this time tn" real tAict
had kept on his criminal career, AMI
finally, while attempting "a burglary in
New York city, WAS fatally snot in tn
abdomen. He was carried 10 the
City Hospital. where h. fingered
four days, and then died. The day
alter lie arrived at the hospital h.
told the attendant that there wa,
"fcllow doing time for him in An
bum" and that he'd like to square
himself on it before he squawked. "
He attendant heard the story, and
wrote on 20 the district attorney Tlc
latter came on t. New York. and on
seeing the dying criminal declared that
lr.l. II. lad escaped from Auburn and
lay there in the hospitdl-bod bcfora
him. Feeling that the burglar, story
might possibly be true, he took hi,
statement in writing and had it proper
~ Witnessed and verified. The Dig lol-
loving the thief died, expressing him
self as happy Mt having done one eopI
action, and the district attorney tool
the train homcHard. Still, to conyiuct
himself that the ply sician had escaped
ne went ont Of his way aud stoape
over at Auburn He entered tac Drl-
son, and almost the first person he met
was DE Doctor, III prison garb, keepln{
the books of the institution. The ter
rible wrong done to the luckless victim
of law and justice so shocked him
that be could merely say few
words of explanation and apology t.
the prisoner and the warden, an
then departed for the county.seat. In
forty eight hours be had petitions to
the Governor for full pardon, signed
by the Judge and nearly all the jury
men and witnesses who had found tLr
Doctor guilty upon the trial. lie went
with the papers to Albany aud made 80
powerful an appeal in person for e.
ecutiye clcmcncy that the Chef Na2i,-
trate of the state not only signed flil
pardon, but also wrote kind au
manly letter 10 the condemned.
The day following Dr. ID. y. W.,
liberated. lie returned to New York
to find his old neighborhool fliel
with strangers, his former friends scat
tered, his professional career destroyed,
aud himself regarded az Suspicious
person by that large class who belirv'
that no one can ever stand behind pri-
son bars without having been in reality
guilty person. fut his courage wa
not destroyed Ivy his nisioitunes, 40
he set to work with Will. he is nov